ATLANTA--CMS' accreditation deadline for first-round bidders came and went last week--this time with no extension--and no rush to the finish.
After release of its supplier quality standards in August 2006, CMS named 11 approved accrediting organizations late last year to enforce them. A merger in January between two of the organizations left 10 accreditors ready to deal with what many had expected to be an accreditation rush in the initial competitive bidding areas.
BALTIMORE--If you are one of the providers CMS contacted to participate in a survey about competitive bidding, then you might be getting a follow-up call if you have not responded.
PITTSBURGH--The battered HME market continues to show wear-and-tear when it comes to mergers and acquisitions, according to a third-quarter report released by The Braff Group.
Figures from the Pittsburgh-based M&A firm show HME transactions fell 7.1 percent, from 14 to 13 in the third quarter; year to date, they toppled from 46 in 2006 to 33 in 2007, a 28.3 percent decline.
The reason?
CARMEL, Calif.--After years of challenging HME audiences to think big, be bold and take risks, industry icon Marilyn Hamilton is herself doing just that.
Hamilton, who has been described as the "face and the force" behind Quickie wheelchairs, has retired from Sunrise Medical, through which the groundbreaking wheelchair is marketed, to start her own business consulting company.
SAN DIEGO--Wildfires fanned by ferocious winds charred much of Southern California last week, leaving behind death and massive destruction--and stories of efforts by home medical equipment providers to care for their patients.
WASHINGTON--In a meeting arranged by Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., representatives from the American Association for Homecare and other industry stakeholders talked with CMS Acting Administrator Kerry Weems on Tuesday, opening up a dialogue on industry concerns that several participants called a positive first step.
MIAMI--A Miami HME provider who appealed to the Small Business Administration for help in fighting competitive bidding said last week he is giving up on getting any support from that agency.
ATLANTA--It's an issue that can be sharply divisive in the HME industry: equipment reuse.
On the one hand, reuse can be viewed as a way to get much-needed equipment to people who would otherwise go without. On the other are warnings about the dangers of faulty equipment and undermining innovation from manufacturers who could be pushed out of the marketplace from payers who are not buying new.
WASHINGTON--Legislation introduced in the Senate and the House to hasten the implementation of a national health information technology system doesn't have enough privacy protections, a group of advocates said Thursday.
The Coalition for Patient Privacy said in a statement that the Wired for Health Care Quality Act (S. 1693), pending consideration by both chambers last week, "does not recognize or protect Americans' right to health privacy."
LAKE FOREST, Calif.--In a strategic move away from reliance on Medicare and Medicaid, giant HME provider Apria Healthcare Group said it will acquire Coram, a national home infusion and specialty pharmaceutical services provider, in a $350 million cash deal.
Company officials said the addition will position Apria as the leading nationwide home infusion provider. Together, the two companies care for more than 100,000 patients in all 50 states.
WASHINGTON--A National Public Radio report that zeroed in on Medicare fraud involving HME has generated a blitz of angry responses from providers who charge that the story was one-sided and cast all providers "into the category of crooks."
The brouhaha erupted on Oct. 11 when NPR aired reporter Greg Allen's piece on its "Morning Edition" show. Allen focused his story on Medicare HME and infusion fraud in South Florida, working mainly from law enforcement interviews.
ORLANDO, Fla.--It could be as late as January 2009 before new codes for manual wheelchairs are implemented because officials are still grappling with how they should be designed, according to a top SADMERC official.
CMS and the SADMERC are attempting to revise the manual wheelchair codes to keep up with new technology.
BALTIMORE--In a system announcement sent Oct. 12, CMS said it is conducting an "intense evaluation" of the Medicare HIPAA Eligibility Transaction System 270/271 and has enacted a temporary moratorium on the enrollment of new application users.
Although current and active submitters will be allowed to retain their access, according to the announcement, "clearinghouse submitters will be required to cease enrolling new customers immediately."
WASHINGTON--Reported in its newsletter last week, the American Association for Homecare said it will testify before the U.S. House of Representatives Small Business Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight at a hearing on the Medicare national competitive bidding program.
Rep. Jason Altmire, D-Pa., the subcommittee chairman, called for the hearing, which will include testimony from both CMS and representatives from the provider community.
BALTIMORE--CMS is likely grappling with far fewer bids for the first round of competitive bidding than it anticipated--about 90 percent fewer, according to attendees at Thursday's meeting of the Program Advisory and Oversight Committee.
ATLANTA--With an eye toward building a better Medtrade, Group Show Director Kevin Bird said Friday that he is putting together an attendee advisory board.
An exhibitor board already exists for the annual HME expo, "but the providers are 50 percent of who we service. I do need to know what they want," said Bird. "Without their feedback, they get what I think they want."
ORLANDO, Fla.--While the minds of Medtrade 2007 attendees were focused on issues like competitive bidding and accreditation, a number of new products unveiled at the show also attracted attention.
One that created a buzz was Inspired Technologies' ViaSpire Liquefier, a device that makes liquid oxygen in a patient's home.
BALTIMORE--CMS' Sandra Bastinelli confirmed Wednesday that no deadline has been set for mandatory accreditation of all Medicare DME suppliers--at least not yet.
"Evidently, someone thought we had a drop-dead deadline for everyone to become accredited, and someone made up a nice date of April 2009," Bastinelli, division director for medical review and education in CMS' Program Integrity Group, said of a rumor circulating in the industry.
WASHINGTON--In a recent letter to Congress, Muscular Dystrophy Association National Chairman Jerry Lewis urged federal lawmakers to pass H.R. 2231, the Medicare Access to Complex Rehabilitation and Assistive Technology Act of 2007.
The proposed legislation would exempt complex rehab products and assistive technologies from Medicare's competitive bidding program.
WASHINGTON--Medicare claims from home medical equipment providers--including those related to power wheelchairs and those from providers in South Florida--will come under increased scrutiny from the Office of Inspector General next year, according to a work plan released last week.
